The Inspector General of Police Solomon Arase, vowed on Friday that his men were on the trails of ex-Niger Delta militant leader, Mr Government Ekpemupolo alias Tompolo.
Arase, who also warned police officers against criminalising civil matters said, “We are looking for Tompolo and my men are on his trails. We will arrest him anywhere we sight him”.
He made the assertion in Ado Ekiti, Ekiti State capital, during his tour of inspection and duty to men and officers of the state Police Command.
A Federal High Court in Lagos ordered that Tompolo be arrested for allegations of diversion of public funds slammed on him by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
The IGP noted that the police cannot cover the whole security space but urged the command to improve on its intelligence gathering through community policing, saying that this remains the best way to get credible information from the public and gain the people’s confidence to combat criminality.
Urging the men and officers to be professional in their conduct, Arase said, ”Your conduct in public must elicit respect and confidence of the people. You should be able to distinguish between civil and criminal matters. The way you enforce the law will determine the respect they accord you. The degree of responsibility of the police is higher than that of the civilians who may not be conversant with the law.”
He added that the police have not been served with the warrant of arrest issued against the former Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party in the state, Dr Tope Aluko, saying necessary actions will be taken when they are served.
Commending the men and officers of the Command for working hard to combat crime in Ekiti, Arase warned against perpetration of extra-judicial killings, saying it has made the police incur more litigations and consequently lose more funds in settlement.
On the welfare of his men, the IGP said his administration will provide housing units in all its 36 commands and Abuja for every rank and file to take ownership of a two-bedroom flat before retirement, while scholarships will be offered to officers to get degree certificates.
In his words, “I’m complaining that I have no money to send you for training; why must we now incur more litigations? Because, when I am sued, the Police’s accounts will be garnished. .
“Nigerians are more intelligent now; if you infringe on their right, they will go to court and unfortunately, the IG will be the person to be sued even while he is not there.
“We must learn how to respect the fundamental rights of the citizens. The reason why we normally punish you during extra-judicial offence has been that as trained officers, who carry arms, you owe the responsibility to protect lives and properties and that was why you were trained,” he said.
The Ekiti State Commissioner of Police, Mr Etop James revealed that the command requires a total of 4,206 officers to make up for the shortfall in personnel, describing this as very inimical to their performance.
The CP begged the IGP to order that no officer should be transferred out of Ekiti without immediate replacement.
-Leadership
